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“This means everything. I represent so much here. I represent the recovery community. The dog rescue community. … This is going to be able to take us to the next level.”

Knight’s journey began in 2011, when at the age of 51, he had lost everything to meth addiction – his family, his job, his home, and nearly his life. HIV positive, and living out of his car, Knight entered rehab at the behest of his mother.

After months of treatment, and at a delicate time in his recovery, Knight’s life changed when a friend showed up at his door in tears. She had relapsed, and in her arms was her beloved dog, Jayde. Knight’s friend said no one would take Jayde, and she asked Knight for a ride to a shelter so she could surrender her.

“I looked at Jayde, and we looked at each other,” Knight said. “It was one of the most spiritual moments, like ‘I think we might need each other here.’”

Knight soon realized that other people were delaying or forgoing treatment because they could not find safe housing for their pets. He sought advice on best practices from a local animal rescue and educated himself on foster care protocol.

“These shelters are running 150 percent over capacity. If you’re over capacity, then you start euthanizing dogs,” Knight said. “We cannot have the solution be euthanize dogs. We can’t.”

1,200 dogs and counting

In 2015, Knight’s organization, Dogs Matter, became a registered nonprofit, and he buttoned up his program – vetting applicants, conducting animal behavior assessments, and executing contracts that require participants to stick to their recovery plan and complete a 12-month post-release wraparound program.

Today, Knight lives with his three dogs, Jayde, Piper and Lady, and his organization has helped more than 1,200 dogs and their owners. As Knight approaches 14 years clean and sober, he hopes to make Dogs Matter a national model program, with the goal of giving other animals and their humans the same second chance at life that he got.

“I share this award with Jayde. She’s the reason why I did this. One act of kindness and then to have that dream and that goal to be able to help others and do one step at a time to get there. And…1,200 dogs later it’s amazing. It’s just beginning too.”

A night celebrating selflessness

During his acceptance remarks, Fox shared the honor with others.

“I’m very proud on behalf of all the people with Parkinson’s and their families who’ve fought so hard for a cure and fought so hard for answers and new drugs in the pipeline, and through our foundation have found a way to realize that.”

You can get involved

A commander of South Korea’s special forces has apologized for ordering his troops to storm parliament last week after martial law was declared, saying he placed them in “grave danger.”

Col. Kim Hyun-tae, commander of South Korea’s 707 Special Task Force, described himself to reporters at a Monday briefing as an “incompetent and irresponsible commander” when he authorized troops to storm the National Assembly during President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived imposition of martial law.

“I ordered the deployment to the National Assembly. As the on-site commander for the 197 troops involved, I was the first to arrive by a helicopter. I instructed them to seal the building, engage in physical confrontations at the front and rear gates, break windows, and enter the premises,” he said.

“If such orders had been given in combat, everyone would have died,” he added. “These troops are the most tragic victims of this situation. They are not guilty. Their only fault lies in following the orders of an incompetent commander. Please forgive them.”

Kim also blamed the country’s former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun for “exploiting” soldiers during the chaotic night.

South Koreans watched in disbelief when President Yoon declared martial law in a shocking televised announcement late Tuesday. Defying the military decree, protesters gathered outside to demand Yoon’s resignation.

In a night of high drama, lawmakers forced their way past nearly 300 troops deployed outside the National Assembly building, and unanimously voted to block the decree, which the president was legally bound to obey – effectively reversing the president’s unilateral order.

One of the defining scenes to emerge from the night was a video of journalist-turned-politician An Gwi-ryeong grabbing a soldier’s gun as lawmakers faced off against troops who had blocked their way into the parliament building.

Kim pleaded for understanding and forgiveness for his soldiers, who he said were merely following his commands.

“Right now, my troops are suffering immensely, and their families – wives and children – are watching this unfold in agony,” he said.

Kim added he would accept full responsibility for his actions and face any legal consequences: “I will bear the burden for everything they have done.”

South Korea’s national police are investigating Yoon, former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun and other top officials for alleged treason. Kim Yong-hyun was detained by prosecutors on Sunday.

The night of extraordinary events sent shock waves across the country and the world.

The declaration of a military emergency, though lasting six hours, was met with shock and anger across the country, which remains deeply scarred by the brutality of martial law imposed during decades of military dictatorship before it won a long, bloody fight for democracy in the 1980s.

While Yoon survived an impeachment vote in an opposition-led parliament on Saturday, his political survival hangs in tatters. His party said they will seek Yoon’s resignation and urged the president to be suspended from duties to protect the country from “grave danger.”

An arson attack on a synagogue in Melbourne last week is being investigated as terrorist incident, Australian officials said Monday, as the government announced it was establishing a new task force to combat antisemitism.

The Adass Israel Synagogue in the city’s south – one of Australia’s most significant Jewish centers – burst into flames early on Friday sending worshippers fleeing during overnight prayers.

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton on Monday said the “horrific, callous and targeted” attack was “likely a terrorist incident” and would be investigated by a joint counter-terrorism team including Victoria Police, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO).

Patton said police were searching for three suspects in connection with the firebombing but would not go into detail about their identities or whether they were known to police.

There was no evidence to suggest there would be any more attacks against other synagogues in Melbourne, said Patton, who added that officers would continue to patrol areas with a large Jewish population.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Friday’s fire at the Melbourne synagogue was the third antisemitic attack in recent months.

The Australian Federal Police had established a special task force called Operation Avalite to respond to the attacks, which include a fire at a Jewish minister’s Melbourne office and vandalism targeting cars in a Jewish area of Sydney.

AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw said the national force would play a greater role in policing threats, violence and hatred toward the Jewish community.

“Unfortunately, in Australia today those of Jewish ethnicity and religion are being targeted because of who they are,” he said. “The AFP will not tolerate crimes that undermine Australia’s security or our way of life.”

On the weekend, the Albanese government committed an extra 32.5 million Australian dollars (close to $21 million) to increase security at Jewish community sites across the country, including synagogues and schools.

Jewish communities across Australia have called out a drastic increase in antisemitic attacks since the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023 and Israel’s ensuing war in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the Melbourne attack as “an abhorrent act of antisemitism,” and linked the firebombing to the Australian government’s support of a United Nations resolution calling on Israel to end all hostilities in Gaza.

“Unfortunately, it is impossible to separate this reprehensible act from the extreme anti-Israeli position of the Labor government in Australia, including the scandalous decision to support the UN resolution calling on Israel ‘to bring an end to its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as rapidly as possible,’” the Prime Minister’s Office statement said on Friday.

The statement also pointed to Australia’s decision to stop former Israeli minister Ayelet Shaked from entering the country for a speaking tour. Australia’s home affairs minister said Shaked was denied a visa over fears her presence would undermine social cohesion.

Of the UN vote, Albanese said Monday that Australia cast its vote along with 157 nations – including most of its Five Eyes partners – and that its position on the conflict hadn’t changed.

“Australia has had for a long period of time … a bipartisan position for a two-state solution in the Middle East … that is still my government’s position,” he said.

Long-suffering Syrians have been rejoicing in the streets after one of the world’s most brutal dictatorships suddenly crumbled in a few short weeks.

For half a century, the Assad family ruled over Syria with an iron fist, with long-documented reports of mass incarceration torture, extra-judicial killings and atrocities against their own people.

A civil war that started during the 2011 Arab Spring ravaged the country and turned it into a breeding ground for extremist group ISIS, while sparking an international proxy war and refugee crisis that saw millions displaced from their homes.

On Sunday, after 13 years of civil war that fractured the country, rebel fighters declared Damacus “liberated” in a video statement on state television, sending Syrian President Bashar al-Assad fleeing to Russia.

Video showed prisoners being freed from Assad’s notorious detention facilities, rebels and civilians were seen ransacking the presidential palace, with footage revealing his luxurious lifestyle and large car collection.

Many in the country are hopeful that Syria could finally be free, but there’s huge uncertainty over what comes next.

Here’s what we know.

What happened?

An armed rebel alliance charged across Syria over 11 days, sweeping through major cities and reigniting a conflict that had been largely static since a 2020 ceasefire agreement.

A new rebel coalition, led by the militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a surprise attack and took control Syria’s largest city Aleppo on November 30, a seismic move that met little resistance from the Syrian army.

Syrian and Russian jets had targeted rebels in Aleppo and Idlib but opposition forces seized a second major city of Hama and quickly advanced on Homs – the gateway to the capital Damascus.

As Homs fell, rebels encircled and marched into Damascus, declaring Assad overthrown and the city “liberated.”

Who are the rebels?

Syria’s rebel coalition is a new grouping called the “Military Operations Command.” It’s made up of various Islamist and moderate factions who, despite their differences, are united in fighting the Assad regime, ISIS and Iran-backed militias.

They’re led by Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, the head of militant group HTS, a former al Qaeda affiliate in Syria that used to go by the name Al-Nusra Front.

HTS officially cut ties with al Qaeda and has been the de facto ruler in Idlib.

But HTS is only one of numerous armed groups operating in Syria. Other groups controlling territory in the country include the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, elements of which Turkey views as a terrorist organization.

The United States, Turkey, the United Nations and several other Western nations continue to designate HTS as a terrorist organization, and the US has placed a $10 million bounty on Jolani.

In his first public remarks since the rebel-led coup, Jolani declared victory on Sunday for the “entire Islamic nation.”

The rebel leader has sought to diminish the shadow of his extremist roots, and one commander insisted in a state TV address on Sunday that “all sects” would be protected.

But millions of Syrians, including those from minority Christian and other religious communities, remain haunted by a legacy of persecution suffered at the hands of extremist groups like al Qaeda and ISIS.

Who is Bashar al-Assad?

Assad is the second generation of an autocratic family dynasty that held power in Syria for more than five decades.

A former ophthalmologist who studied in London, Assad took power in an unopposed election following the death of his father Hafez al-Assad, who had led the Baath Party since seizing power in 1970.

Like his father, Assad tolerated little dissent and throughout the 13-year civil war, he and his forces have been accused of severe human rights violations and brutal assaults against civilians, with reports of using starvation as a weapon of war, enforced disappearances and killings, and the deliberate bombing of civilian buildings like schools and hospitals.

Among Assad’s worst atrocities was the 2013 sarin gas attack in the city Ghouta, which killed more than 1,400 people and was labeled a war crime by the then-UN Secretary General.

Assad’s notorious detention facilities were black holes where anyone deemed an opponent of the regime disappeared, with widespread reports of torture and inhumane conditions. In 2017, an Amnesty International report claimed as many as 13,000 people had been hanged from 2011 to 2015 at Saydnaya Prison.

Why did this come about and what’s next?

Rebels capitalized on a weakened government whose key allies are heavily preoccupied with other conflicts.

Russia’s grinding war in Ukraine since 2022 has sucked in manpower and resources, leaving little jets and troops for key ally Syria.

Iran has been hamstrung as its war with Israel escalated in the past year. Its main proxy Hezbollah has been decimated by Israeli attacks and airstrikes.

The anti-regime coalition is now disbanding Assad’s military, laying out its vision for a post-Assad Syria.

But experts wonder if the next phase will be a new dawn for a people strangled by a brutal autocracy – or whether sectarianism will bring a different type of authoritarian rule.

US President Joe Biden described the fall of the Assad regime as an “historic opportunity for the long-suffering people of Syria to build a better future” but cautioned it was also a moment of risk and uncertainty in the region.

Iran’s ambassador to Syria Hossein Akbari warned that the fallout from the collapse of Assad’s regime will be beyond American control and could lead to a conflict involving regional countries and Turkey.

Questions are now focused on what a new governing system in Syria would look like, and how it will work given the disparate groups and interests involved, and whether the reordering of power will only lead to further instability.

For now, Syrians across the world are celebrating the stunning and unexpected political turn that caught much of the world off guard.